6 Reasons Why Chappell Roan’s First-Ever Rick Owens Show Was So Major
From the soundtrack to unlikely sources of inspiration.
Rick Owens has many names, the Dark Prince included, but you’d never think to call him a basic king. And yet his Fall/Winter 2025 at Paris Fashion Week explored a more pared-back and classic side to his aesthetic. The designer returned, as ever, to the Palais de Tokyo to stage his show. Making Rick Owens debut was Chappell Roan, who, fresh from the rabanne show, made her way to Avenue du President Wilson with a fresh beat to match her silver Prong dress. She sat next to Vaquera’s Bryn Taubensee and Patric DiCaprio, down the from the dreamy Luka Sabbat, a regular Owens collaborator, and the one and only Michèle Lamy. But there was so much more to take in from the show. So, without further ado, here are six things you might have missed from Rick Owens FW25 show…
1. Owens recycled his show notes
If it ain’t broken, don’t fix it, right? Owens repurposed his show notes from his menswear show. “For our men’s collection, shown six weeks ago, I wrote the following,” they read without further explanation. Borrowing the same name, too, it makes sense when you consider that Owens often riffs on his menswear offering for his womenswear collection.
2. FW25 had unlikely sources of inspiration
There were two main sources of inspiration for the collection – both as unlikely as each other. First, Concordia Sagittaria – hence the name Concordians. “I was thinking about my 22 years of traveling to our factory in this small industrial Italian town, and not just alone but with my team, all traveling from their respective glittering cities,” the designer explained. “This cloistered life seems to be what it takes to be able to focus on reaching for something weird and wonderful.”
The second source of inspiration? His now sold-out Rimowa collaboration. “I have upgraded my carry-on with a new Rimowa collaboration customized with a bronzed exterior and fully lined in black leather. I asked Rimowa to give me the bronze of a Richard Serra wall and, bless them, they did. The Rimowa collab inspired me to offer leather flight jackets, also lined in leather – something that surprisingly never occurred to be before.”
3. The laser cut leather trousers made a comeback
If you saw anything from January’s men’s show, it was likely the viral fringed leather boots – part dragon scales, party living snake. This time, they returned as chain-linked skirts and dresses, crafted from heavyweight groppone cow leather. Every inch as fabulous as their predecessors, if not more.
4. Rick Owens’ take on “basics” is anything but
As far as Owens’ shows go, it was a demure approach to be quite honest, but completely elevated. Remember the Rimowa leather lining? It inspired Owens to swap out the satin lining of jackets and replace it with leather. Hoodies were made of rubber, and denim wasn’t any old denim. It was was 14oz organic Japanese Indigo Slub denim, woven in the Fukuyama prefecture by a mill founded in 1893.
@hypebae We lost count of how many full-black outfits we saw at #RickOwens FW25… Video: Hypebae #parisfashionweek #tiktokfashion #chappellroan #michelelamy ♬ original sound – cary!
5. The soundtrack was seriously nostalgic
Iggy Pop’s ‘Mass Production’ blared in the background and carried deeper meaning for Owens. “I used [the song] for my first New York runway show 23 years ago,” he said. “We won’t legally be able to use [it] on YouTube, but it’s a song that yearns for the weird and wonderful, as much to me now as it did back then.”
6. There were collaborations aplenty
The previously mentioned laser-cut leather pieces, created by Parisian designer Victor Clavelly – who “specialises in exaggerating the body in a way I’m always on the lookout for,” per Owens – was only one of the many collaborations on show. There was also the team-up with London’s Leo Prothmann, Parisian rubber mistress Matisse Dimaggio, capes and coats with Bonotto and knitwear designer Tanja Vidic, too.
